What is Missing From Almost All Weight Loss Programs?

Is losing weight just a matter of eating better, exercising more and getting enough rest? These are three basics that in the right combination might do the job, at least in the short-term. When it comes to dieting, despite an estimated 100 billion dollar annual weight loss industry, most people cannot seem to keep off the weight that they lose. Two studies revealed that 95% of people who lost weight on a diet regained that weight plus more, within 1 to 5 years. A change in lifestyle that does include a commitment to the right quantity and quality of food, daily movement and adequate rest, will increase the number of people who maintain their weight loss over the long-term. But many people struggle to sustain those lifestyle changes. So what are the missing ingredients? If you are hoping that what I am going to say will give you the quick-fix that you have been looking for, you wouldn’t be alone. We live in a culture that has an immediate gratification attitude. But here is the truth - the missing ingredients require time and patience. If you are willing, then the reward for your effort goes far beyond weight loss. The feedback that I receive from clients consistently speaks to the inner peace, self-respect, sense of control over their life, stress reduction, and overall health in mind, body and spirit that happens along with the weight loss. Here are the three missing ingredients: 1/ MIND – How strong is your mind muscle? Through years of sensory input and memory storage, your brain is programmed to constantly be processing thoughts. If the thoughts that you repeat to yourself, consciously or unconsciously, are negative, then that negativity will get reflected in your life and your body. It is imperative that you learn to recognize the beliefs that are subconsciously driving your thinking. Once you recognize what your beliefs are, you can use any combination of powerful tools to help you shift them to be more true to your desires. Being able to observe your thoughts and override your programmed beliefs is a key to lifetime weight loss. 2/ EMOTION - How easily can you shift from a state of tension to a state of ease? Emotions are a basic and a passionate part of being alive. Yet emotional eating is a primary culprit in the struggle to keep weight off. Recognizing and releasing emotions is a practice. With practice you can develop the confidence to know that you can handle any emotional situation with ease. When you understand the process and have the tools that you need at hand, it is a far less scary proposition. Without the understanding and tools, you may not know how to recognize what you are feeling or how to deal with your emotions even when you do recognize what they are. Food, alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs are the ways of distraction from what is really going on. Your feelings won’t hurt you. But the resistance to them will, as it will keep you trapped in the cycle of using food or other substances to stuff down your truth. 3/ SOUL - How connected are you to nourishing yourself at a deeper level? You know that you are nourishing your soul when you feel passionately alive. You are fully present, with no place else you would rather be in that moment. Recognizing what feeds your soul and incorporating more of that into your daily life has the potential to increase your trust in the order of things, to strengthen your sense of purpose, to give you more reason to be and do your best. Feeding your soul might happen from the smallest happenings, like offering or being offered help by a stranger, seeing the first bluejay of the season, making someone laugh, or listening to beautiful music. Or it might mean engaging in creative acts like dancing, writing poetry, playing an instrument or singing in the shower. Knowing what feeds you at a deeper level gives you a place to turn to when you choose not to eat. Engaging in those soul-nourishing activities will give you the strength to say no to food and yes to your other senses.